Stony Point’s Kerry O'Shaughnessy, a North Rockland graduate, is a junior midfielder on Binghamton’s women’s soccer team. / Binghamton University

Written by

JOE LOMBARDI

THE JOURNAL NEWS

Making the adjustment from high school to college can be a challenge for many players. There's no such thing as a road map that can show which direction they should follow.

But Stony Point resident Kerry O'Shaughnessy, a junior midfielder on the Binghamton University women's soccer team, has had the next best thing.

Kerry's sister, Caitlin, played a few years ahead of her not only at North Rockland High, but also at Binghamton.

"It was good," Kerry said. "I always looked up to Caitlin. I used to watch her when I was younger, and it was fun to play with someone you've looked up to so long — especially in college."

Caitlin O'Shaughnessy was a senior at Binghamton when Kerry was a freshman.

"I got to see how she grew as a player in college, and that helped me a lot," Kerry said. "Not many people get that chance to play with their sibling, and I've gotten to do it twice."

Jeff Leightman, in his ninth year at Binghamton, has coached both sisters.

"They're very different personalities," Leightman said. "Caitlin was one of the most competitive players I've ever coached. She wanted to win worse than anything in the world. Kerry is developing in that.

"As far as players go, they are similar in terms of being highly skilled with good vision and running all over the place to make things happen."

This year probably has been Kerry O'Shaughnessy's most challenging with the Bearcats, because she suffered a knee injury in the preseason.

"I injured it in practice and had to get X-rays and an MRI, and I ended up having fluid inside my joint," the 5-foot-6 junior said. "I'm still getting treatments on it, and it's been a struggle dealing with it. But you just have to get it through your head you can play, and then remember to ice it after the game. Hopefully it will get better by the time conference play starts and I will have completely recovered."

Despite being less than 100 percent, O'Shaughnessy has appeared in all eight of the Bearcats' games this season, starting four of them. She has one assist.

Last year, she started 15 of Binghamton's 16 games. As a freshman in 2004, she helped Binghamton finish 14-6-1 and win the America East Conference title. Caitlin O'Shaughnessy was Binghamton's third-leading scorer that season, which ended with the Bearcats' 6-1 loss to Penn State in the opening round of the NCAA tournament.

Kerry thinks this year's team has the ability to capture another conference title.

"Our team has great potential," O'Shaughnessy said. "I think everybody brings something to the team, and I'm hoping that everything comes together when we start conference play."

If that's the case, another sister combination from the Lower Hudson Valley undoubtedly will be a big reason — twins Betsy and Mackenzie Harris of Chappaqua, junior midfielders who played at Horace Greeley. Betsy is Binghamton's third-leading scorer with a goal and three assists.

"They're doing really well," O'Shaughnessy said. "They're actually two of my best friends on the team. They bring a lot to the team on and off the field.

"We talk all the time about how we played at the same time and how we all come from the same place."

In her junior year at North Rockland in 2002, O'Shaughnessy helped North Rockland upset Washingtonville 2-1 in the Class A state quarterfinals. The Red Raiders then lost to Baldwinsville 2-0 in the semifinals.

O'Shaughnessy, who started playing soccer at age 7, takes as much pride in her defensive play as she does her offensive exploits.

"They're both so different, but you need to know each so well in order to play the entire game," she said "I have confidence that I can play both, but they are so different in terms of being able to contain players and also getting up the field and being able to score."